The invention relates to a substrate gap supporter (called as a substrate holder), and more particularly a substrate gap supporter which is attached and installed on a substrate so that operators don't need to manually fit it into holes of the substrate, and has a constant thickness at any cases even though being produced at large amount so that when it is attached to the substrate, gap between the substrate and other panel becomes constant. Moreover, the invention relates to a method suitable for manufacturing the substrate gap supporter.
Flat panel displays (FPD) such as LCD, LED, PDP and what have you have been already commercially used. As the flat panel displays become thin, the LCD panel and what have you and a PCB substrate mounted with a driving circuit for driving the LCD panel are located near to each other, thereby the PCB substrate being pressed by the LCD panel and what have you to cause problem of electrical disconnection. Moreover, because heights of electrical parts mounted on the PCB substrate or soldering parts aren't constant, when the PCB substrate and the LCD panel close to each other, height difference between them causes problem of flexing the PCB substrate.
FIGS. 1 to 3 are views for describing the conventional LCD devices shown in the Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 2007-5806 (Backlight assembly and liquid crystal display device for using same, which is publicized in Jan. 10 of 2007), wherein the FIG. 1 is a exploded perspective view, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are views for describing a situation where a flexible circuit substrate (230) is curved so that a printed circuit board (210) is located below a backlight assembly (2000).
Referring to the FIG. 1, the LCD device comprises a display assembly (1000) and the backlight assembly (2000), wherein the display assembly (1000) comprises a liquid crystal display panel (100), a driving circuit unit (200), and a upper receiving member (300), and the backlight assembly (2000) comprises a lamp unit (400), a light guide plate (500), a reflecting plate (600), an optical sheet (700), a lower receiving member (800), and a buffer member (900).
The liquid crystal display panel (100) is formed by stacking a color filter substrate (110) on a TFT substrate (120). A driving IC (111) installed in a circumferential portions of the TFT substrate (120) is connected to a PCB substrate (210) through the flexible circuit substrate (230). On the PCB substrate (210) are a control IC mounted so that it applies a given data signal and a gate signal to data lines and gate lines of the TFT substrate (120).
A linear light source type of light emitted from the lamp (410) installed in a lamp clamp (411) is converted through the light guiding plate (500) into a surface light source type of light, and evenly illuminated across the liquid crystal display panel (100) via an optical plate (710) and a diffusing plate (720).
A stacking structure from the reflecting plate (600) to the liquid crystal display panel (100) are firmly supported by the lower receiving member (800) and the upper receiving member (300), and the flexible circuit substrate (230) is curved downward as shown in the FIGS. 2 and 3 so that the PCB substrate (210) is located below the lower receiving member (800). On the lower receiving member (800) is the buffer member (900) mounted to prevent the flexible circuit substrate (230) from being damaged.
As such, in the conventional case, as the flat display device is made slim, the PCB substrate (210) is located below the lower receiving member (800) to be about attached to the member (800) so that some gap needs to be existed between the PCB substrate (210) and the lower receiving member (800) in order to protect electronic parts mounted on the PCB substrate (210).
Moreover, because heights of the electronic parts mounted on the PCB substrate (210) or soldering portions therefore aren't constant, when the PCB substrate (210) is attached to the lower receiving member (800), the PCB substrate (210) can be curved, so that some gap must be formed to prevent the curving. Accordingly, for forming such a gap, a gap supporter is installed between the lower receiving member (800) and the PCB substrate (210).
FIG. 4 is a view for describing a conventional gap supporter (10). As shown in the FIG. 4, because lead soldering portions for the electronic parts (21) are present on the back of the PCB substrate (210), if the PCB substrate (210) and the lower receiving member (800) are completely attached, the short will occur and so there will be concerns for electrical malfunction due to circuit's breaking, parts' burnings, and soldering portions' damages.
For preventing this, there are holes in the PCB substrate (210) and plastic-molded gap supporters (10) are pushed and fixed therein. Then, gap supporters (10) are fixedly connected to the PCB substrate (210) and a constant gap between the lower receiving member (800) and the PCB substrate (210) by means of the gap supporters (10) is present so that the potential in the PCB substrate (210) prevents the short between other wires to prevent circuit substrate and parts (21) from being burnt
As mentioned above, the case that gap supporters (10) between the lower receiving member (800) and the PCB substrate (210) are installed is described, but the invention isn't restricted thereto and the same situation happens even between other panels and the PCB substrate so that the gap supporters (10) are installed. Moreover, the substrate installed with the gap supporters (10) isn't restricted to the PCB substrate but other types of substrates will corresponds thereto.
Moreover, for example gap supporters (10) are installed on the back of the PCB substrate (210), but the invention isn't restricted thereto and they are installed on the front of the PCB substrate (210), that is the gap supporters (10) may be installed on the front of the PCB substrate (210) when the surface mounted with electronic parts (21) is attached to other panels.
The PCB substrate (210) for driving the liquid crystal display panel (100) is illustrated but other than that gap supporters (10) may be installed in various PCB substrates such as the PCB substrate, the backlight PCB substrate, the power source PCB bard and what have you.
However, conventional gap supporters (10) must be installed while operators manually push and fix them one by one into holes of the PCB substrate (10) so that they have disadvantages in terms of installation cost and time. Moreover, this manually fixing-into-holes method causes a plurality of gap supporters (10) not to all be protruded at a constant height and some height difference so that there is also a problem that a gap between the PCB substrate (10) and the panel isn't constant.